Genres of Children's Literature

       Genres of children's literature include; traditional literature, fantasy, science fiction, realistic fiction, historical fiction, poetry, and nonfiction biography.

• Traditional literature includes literature in which there is no know author and is a oral and literary heritage of humankind.
• Fantasy includes literature of imaginative worlds. They are make-believe story settings, people and creatures, or events that could not happen in real life.
• Science Fiction includes literature where stories include what might occur in the future based on extending physical laws and scientific principles.
• Realistic Fiction includes literature that includes "what if" stories, illusion of reality. In realistic fiction characters seem real and has a contemporary setting.
• Historical Fiction includes literature that is set in the past and could not have happened. Stories reconstruct events of the past that occurs.
• Poetry includes literature that contains condensed language, imagery, expression of imaginative thoughts and perceptions.
• Nonfiction Biography includes literature that takes an account of a person's life or part of a life history. This includes information facts about the real world.

         Categories within the genre include:

• Traditional literature- Folktales, fairy tales, myths and legends, tall tales, and fables.
• Fantasy and Science fiction- Animal fantasy, toys and objects, miniature worlds, time warps, unreal worlds, magic, preposterous characters or situations, quest tales, science fiction.
• Realistic fiction- adventure stories, mysteries, animal stories, stories about growing up, families, sports.
• Historical fiction- fictionalized memoir, fictionalized family history, fiction based on research.
• Poetry- Mother Goose, nursery rhymes, lyric, narrative, limericks, haiku, free verse, concrete, sonnet, ballad.
• Nonfictional biography- authentic biography, memoir, autobiography, informational.

        An example of a book for each genre:

• Traditional literature- The Rough-Faced Girl retold by R. Martin
• Fantasy and Science fiction- The Tale of Despereaux by K. DiCamillo
• Realistic fiction- Kira Kira by C. Kadohata
• Historical fiction- The Upstairs Room by J. Reiss
• Poetry- Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening by R. Frost
• Nonfiction Biography- The Lost Garden by L. Yep 

 Johnson, D. (2009). The joy of children's literature. (2 ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. pgs 8-9
 

Reading to and With Children

        It is extremely important to read aloud to children. Research shows that reading with your child is extremely important in helping your child to become a better reader, writer, listener and speaker.  Reading with your child helps them to become lifelong learners as they build vocabulary, develop listening and speaking skills and explore and learn about the world around them. Reading aloud shows children that you value reading and think it is important.  

      Reading aloud also:

• provides a context for teacher to demonstrate the nature, purpose, and act of reading and to model their own love of reading
• creates and environment where all listeners have equal access to knowledge
• builds interest in language and provides models of language in use
• extends opportunities for the development of new insights and understandings and for building on existing knowledge
• provides a context for teachers to model fluent reading and how reading think in the process of reading
• builds interest and develops tastes in a range of genres available in written language
• improves listening skills and develops use of imagery
• offers multiple perspectives and extends a listener's worldview

Tips for reading aloud:

• Make sure you make time every day to read a book aloud just for fun.
• Choose books with diversity.
• Give the book a "voice" by interpreting the mood, rhythm, tone and intensity of the book.
• Make sure all students can see and hear the book.
• Hold up the book while you are reading.
• Share the name of the author/illustrator.
• Give the children a preview of the book.
• Give children a chance to respond before, during, and after reading.
• Model, don't question.
• Connect the book to other books, authors, genres, and content.

Here are a list of the top 10 read alouds in which books come to life:

• The Book of Story Beginnings by Kristin Kladstrup
• Edward and the Pirates by David McPhail
• The Great Good Thing by Roderick Townley
• Inkheart by Cornelia Funke
• Lionel and the Book of Beasts by E. Nesbit
• Magic by the Book by Nina Bernstein
• My Book Box by Will Hillenbrand
• The Neverending Story by Michael Ende
• The Red Book by Barbara Lehman
• Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Book? by Lauren Child

Johnson, D. (2009). The joy of children's literature. (2 ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. pg 388-392,408.

Good Readers

              Good readers are active readers. The following are characteristics of good readers:

• They have clear goals in mind for their reading. While they read they evaluate whether or not the text and reading of it are meeting their goals.
• They look over the text before they read, noting things such as structure of the text.
• They make frequent predictions about what will occur next.
• They construct, revise, and question the meaning they make while they read.
• They try to determine the meaning of unfamiliar words and concepts in the text.
• They draw from, compare, and integrate their prior knowledge with material in the text.
• They think about the author of the text, the authors style, beliefs, and intentions.
• They monitor their understanding of the text they are reading.
• They evaluate the text's quality and value.
• They can construct and revise summaries of what they have read.

               Teachers can assist their children in becoming good readers by:

• Creating a supportive and encouraging environment that includes various genres of text, challenging tasks, and collaborative learning structures to increase students' motivation to read and comprehend text.
• Providing clear explanations and modeling how to perform a repertoire of strategies that promote comprehension monitoring and foster comprehension.
• Engaging students in constructive conversations with teachers and peers.
• Providing comprehension strategy instruction that is deeply connected throughout the curriculum.
• Creating print-rich environments that have a variety of literacy materials that support instruction readily accessible.

Every child has the opportunity to become a good reader, it's up to you to make the difference!

 Johnson, D. (2009). The joy of children's literature. (2 ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.

Importance of Diversity in Children's Literature

       I believe it is extremely important to incorporate stories including diversity in your classroom library. Children's literature involving diversity not only gives students the opportunity to see life from another perspective, but helps them develop good character education as well. Diversity in children's literature can include cultural diversity, religious diversity, aging, gender equity, exceptionalities, language, social diversity, and family structures. Here are some benefits of using diversity in children's literature in the classroom found in my Children's Literacy Textbook, The Joy of Children's Literature:

• It connects children to the world by exposing them to diverse viewpoints other than the mainstream
• It fosters awareness, appreciation, and understanding of people who are different from and similar to themselves
• It promotes critical inquiry into issues of equal representation of how people of diverse cultures are depicted in all book.

Here are the top 10 diversity read alouds found in The Job of Children's Literature:

• El Barrio by Debbi Chocolate
• Faith by Maya Ajmera
• I Lost My Tooth in Africa by Penda Diakite
• Jazzy Miz Mozetta by Brenda Roberts
• Only One Year by Andrea Cheng
• Poems to Dream Together by Francisco X. Alacron
• Rickshaw Girl by Mitali Perkins
• Saltypie: A Choctaw Journey from Darkness into Light by Tim Tingle
• Uncle Peter's Amazing Chinese Wedding by Lenore Look
• We by Alice Schertle 

 Johnson, D. (2009). The joy of children's literature. (2 ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.